Putting the Public Back in Public Relations

How Social Media Is Reinventing the Aging Business of PR

by Brian Solis and Deirdre Breakenridge

FT Press, 2009

ISBN: 9780137150694
Pages: 352

Category: Sales & Marketing

In this summary you will learn

• How traditional public relations (PR) differs from Web-based “PR 2.0”
• How to use PR 2.0 for news releases, networking and customer support
• What “Social Media” can and cannot accomplish in a corporate setting

Why you should read Putting the Public Back in Public Relations

Although changes in the media have always challenged public relations professionals to stay up-to-date, individual PR practitioners’ credibility and solid relationships still define their success. This means that tech advocates may be somewhat overstating when they claim that “Social Media” outlets will radically alter public relations, though they certainly add many more tools to the mix. Even if Brian Solis and Deirdre Breakenridge tend to inflate the extent of the digital revolution, their book is helpful and worth reading. You’ll have to be comfortable with some Web-jargon to understand their tech-centric thinking, but PR professionals do need to know how to make the most of social media – blogs, social networking sites, “micromedia” and the like – and how to best channel its unquestionable potential and impact. For that purpose, getAbstract recommends this handy overview. In terms of details, its most hands-on, useful section is the appendix of social media links.

About the Authors

Brian Solis, a principal in the FutureWorks PR and new media agency, co-founded the Social Media Club and the Media 2.0 Workgroup. He blogs about the future of PR and marketing. Deirdre Breakenridge, president of PFS Marketwyse, leads brand awareness campaigns. She wrote PR 2.0, The New PR Tooklkit and Cyberbranding.

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